A 13-year-old boy is fighting for his life after suffering severe injuries from falling off a moving train while allegedly attempting to train surf in Caringbah, Sydney. The incident occurred on the evening of yesterday, and emergency services took over an hour to stabilise the teenager, who had sustained significant injuries to his face, neck, and arms.
Train surfing, the risky act of riding on the exterior of a moving train, has gained a troubling popularity in recent years, often encouraged by social media. Eyewitness accounts detail how the boy’s friends hurried to the scene upon hearing the news, as ambulance crews worked to secure him for transport. One friend recounted, “All these ambulance crews came, they were cutting the fence, then they put him on a stretcher.”
This incident underscores a concerning trend among young people, as authorities attribute the rise in train surfing incidents to social media’s influence. Transport NSW Coordinator-General Howard Collins highlighted the stark reality of engaging in such dangerous activities, stating, “It might be five seconds of Instagram fame, but it might be 50 years or worse of pain and agony when you fall off the back of the train.” He urged parents to monitor their children’s activities closely, warning that playful antics around trains can lead to dire consequences.
As part of a preventative measure, authorities are trialling the installation of “beaks” on some trains in Sydney. Unfortunately, the train from which the boy fell did not have this safety feature. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the perils associated with thrill-seeking behaviours, particularly those that involve train surfing.